The American Dream

It can be argued that the American Dream is dwindling as the country ages. As the country’s population rises, competition becomes more intense. This undoubtedly can make it more difficult to achieve a level of success that was more easily attainable 30 years ago. In addition, the cost of education has gotten so high that many graduates are paying back student loans for years. Many are stuck in a pit of debt that greatly hinders their career and personal goals. Also, rising costs of healthcare make it nearly impossible for some lower-income families to worry about more than keeping their basic needs met. In fact, some millennials are so fed up with current conditions that they completely deny the existence of the modern American Dream. For example, Andy Vasoyan, a 24 year old freelance voice actor and audio producer said, “I feel that the American dream (existed) and then just disappeared into the ether. Right now, because of income inequality and the difficulty of living in urban centers, it’s probably impossible for a huge segment of the population. And I don’t know if it was ever a real thing, but the idea of working

The American Dream has long been worshipped and held as an ideal in our nation for decades. One day settling down with a family of four and living in the suburbs was once held as the perfect end to an American fairytale dream, but as the housing crisis of 2008 tore through the market and threatened the dreams of countless families. Unfortunately millennials grew up watching the housing crash tear at the hearts of their parents and threaten to divide families from their homes. As a result, millennials see the American Dream differently than previous generations. Instead of dreaming to one day own a home, millenials see the American Dream as the opportunity for freedom to explore the world and decide where they shall land. The American Dream has changed from the destination to the journey.

John Steinbeck, the author of the novella Of Mice and Men, describes a world where the American Dream was about having a opportunity to be successful through all the hard work and dedication. Steinbeck paints a disturbing portrait of America in the 1930’s. Steinbeck reveals that times can be very unpleasant and anything can happen. During the Great Depression it was not very straightforward to obtain your American Dream. There were many obstacles you had to face and problems that came along. You never knew what was next. Social interactions were not always a guarantee neither was family. For instance, in the novella no character truly had a family or a home. When you think of the word lonely what do you think? Do you think of that pain

We are all different with different strengths and weaknesses. We live in a country where competition is high but opportunities are distributed in different ways. Does race affect the success of the american dream? The American dream, a goal that makes up the energy of the country, it’s what keeps the people going. In America there is education, a vial source of where you are able to study anything you want and know that you will have a stable future. With different situations people are put it that keeps them from even believing the American dream is possible, is no longer on the table to grasp and create, but to worry about the obstacles they are faced with in the present. Thinking about the future is no longer an option.

People cannot achieve the American Dream as a result of obstacles relating to race, gender, and socioeconomic status; this can be rectified by instituting equal housing and service programs nationwide. The racial blockades on the path to reaching the American Dream are apparent throughout the stories of many. The lives of these people are wrought with racism and discrimination, for no reason other than the color of their skin. A plethora of women are also held back and prevented from attaining their goals, as a result of their gender. In each of their unique stories, they are unnecessarily defined by their gender, and averting those women from their objective of the American Dream. Accompanying race and gender, socioeconomic status serves

Many people have different ideas of what the "American Dream" is and what it takes to make it a reality. The most common and the most accurate idea of the American Dream is for all to have the opportunity to have a chance at living a nice life. This includes all immigrants and anyone else who seems to lack better opportunities often. "The American Dream is the belief that anyone, regardless of race, class, gender, or nationality, can be successful in America (read:rich) if they just work hard enough" (Wulick). The American Dream is also influenced by those that have money and are successful. These people are looked up to as a goal when it comes to a better life. The American dream also includes overall happiness that stems from a

The American dream for minorities is a difficult to obtain goal because for minorities, everyday obstacles prevent them from obtaining this dream that was never meant for them. Despite the difficulties, there exists many instances throughout history of people from a wide variety of cultural backgrounds have fought for the simple right to be able to have the chance to reach that goal. Ironically, during one of the most devastating times in our nation’s history, historian James Truslow Adams coined the term “The American Dream”. The term American Dream is defined as the ideals of freedom, equality, and equal opportunity traditionally held to be available to every single American Citizen regardless of race, gender or sexual preference. My

Set during the gruelling Great Depression of the 1930’s, John Steinbeck’s touching novella Of Mice and Men focuses on the working class of America and two men, George Milton and Lennie Small, as they work on a ranch in hopes of owning their own land. Set in the dusty town of Soledad, California, Steinbeck’s classic characters offer a parable about what it means to be human. George and Lennie's ambition of owning their own ranch, and the obstacles that stand in the way of that ambition, reveal the impossibility of the American Dream, while the loneliness and isolation of the members of the ranch offer a true insight into the nature of human existence, especially when the weaknesses of the characters cause them to destroy those more

For generations homeownership has been viewed as one of the cornerstones of the American dream. Nevertheless this American dream has almost exclusively been available to white Americans. However, over the past 25 years this dream has become a reality for more and more Americans as the rise of the subprime mortgage market has allowed the majority of Americans to become homeowners. In 2005, at the peak of the housing bubble, 69.2% of Americans seemed to have achieved the American dream of owning their homes. Three years later, the housing bubble popped and the American economy entered the most severe economic downturn since the Great Depression. The downturn was largely caused by the implosion of the subprime mortgage market whose growth was driven, in part, by the belief that homeownership is a right that all Americans are entitled to as part of the American dream. The perpetuation of this belief is dangerous to the United States economy because homeownership has for so long been unobtainable for the majority of non-white Americans, as one of the only paths to this American dream for many minorities is through high-risk home loans that threaten the stability of the economy.

The ‘American Dream” has historically been one of the driving concepts in what success was supposed to look like in America. Many individuals and families from all over the world migrant to America simply because of this picture perfect “promise” of success and happiness. The “house with the white picket fence” mentality has been wildly spread throughout our society and as a result, a misconception about America has been created.

The belief of the American Dream has been around for several years, but still the question lingers: is the “promise” to the immigrants being fulfilled? Many argue that America is the land of greater opportunities and freedom. However, in the news, the only stories that are reported are the immigrant success stories, not the ones who failed. It does not take into account the new ideas erupting in the government, and the racial bias immigrants are faced with. Although some may claim that the American dream is being fulfilled because of the high number of immigrants that are economically successful, that is not the case because of racial discrimination, education level, and the changing immigration laws.

Millennials see this option, of internet fame, all that can come from it, and they want to create their own version. A heavy, unsupervised desire to independently indulge in every greatness earth dangles in front of them. That is why we see a rise in AirB&B, in which individuals can rent out their own apartments or houses to tourists. Millennials want to adventure but with a sense of home. Instead of a hotel, they want a cozy two bed room space with a full kitchen and working televisions, and of course Wi-Fi; so, they can google “trendy places near me” and accomplish the perfect Instagram feed.

After high school, they were encouraged to get a job and start to pay their own way. Others were off to college, financed by their parents or financial aid. The average young adult started their first jobs in the new job market with the expectation much beyond their skills. This took a few years for them to learn they would not be managers within five years. As they settle down in the job, they look around and found role models among their peers. They learned about banking, stocks, finances, and others who own homes. Since this generation is tech Sauvé, they enhanced their new information with what the internet had to say. And they set about rising to the levels of their peers.

One of the key barriers that keep the black people repressed is the PG County police, keeping the minority in constant fear. Coates lists a few incidences, “killed Elmer Clay Newman, then claimed he’d rammed his own head . . . shot Gary Hopkins and said he’d gone for an officer’s gun . . . beaten Freddie McCollum half-blind and blamed it . . . (75). The police are suppose to serve as protection and enforcing the law. However, it is primarily the white class that is being protected from the black class. The U.S. society views black people as dangerous and justify having them stay in ghettos and projects where they cannot interrupt white order. This is a theory that Coates comes across that ‘safety’ was a higher value than justice, perhaps the highest value” (84). Having police carrying out the dirty work and then ultimately forgetting and moving on is a component of the American Dream. The Dream is viewed as clean and beautiful, the United States does not want to acknowledge the bloody barrier that has put up against the black people that prevent them from reaching the Dream. Because to confess to the horrendous acts that the U.S., and thus the American Dream is build upon will ruin the pedestal it has been placed upon.

As a Fourteen year old girl, I imagined what it would be like to have my life together and own a home. I dreamt of having a modest home, two stories, cozy enough for a family. It would have a back porch, designed of a burnt umber wooden floor and white accent trim. From the porch, you could look upon a serene view of open green spaces. Everything about it would have been beautiful, but now, I am twenty-two and feel I would be lucky to ever move out of my parents house in the next five to seven years which is a very pessimistic sentiment to have, but I know I’m not the only one who feels this way. Many of my friends and colleagues have expressed similar viewpoints. It therefore begs the question, what makes this so daunting for us, my generation, the millennial generation, to have a brighter outlook on achieving our dreams, the American dream?